


These Passing Shades...

by RingingSilence



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: Can you imagine the possibilities, Spoilers for s03e03: Ghost, ghost assassins coming home, how creepy/cool is that?, seriously
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-27
Updated: 2019-11-27
Packaged: 2021-02-26 05:14:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 865
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21578155
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/RingingSilence/pseuds/RingingSilence
Summary: Loret had heard plenty of ghost stories growing up. When your race is known to produce the best assassins in the world there are almost as many tales of angry spirits as great battles.He just never expected to see one.Or: a drabble about a ghost coming home, even if no one can see her.
Kudos: 35





	These Passing Shades...

It all started one morning while Loret was sneaking around the blacksmith's forge.

Loret had heard plenty of ghost stories growing up. When your race is known to produce the best assassins in the world there are almost as many tales of angry spirits as great battles.

He just never expected to see one.

He was wandering past the rack of newly-made swords, their blades catching the light in the way only metal that's never seen battle can, when a flash of white snagged his attention. He nearly stumbled right into the deadly weapons in his haste to turn around and see who'd caught him lurking, hoping that maybe he'd have enough time to dive into the shadow of the workbench before they noticed him.

The room was empty. 

Heart still pounding against his ribs he ran out of the forge. 

After that day he started noticing little things that stood out. Objects were moved while everyone was gone. Food would go missing. One time he lost his favorite wooden dagger, only for it to turn up on his doorstep later that same day. It scared him at first so he went to his mother to ask if it was possible someone she had killed had followed her home. She'd sat him down and explained that sometimes when an assassin abandoned their duty they were turned into ghosts: elves who were still alive but would no longer be able to speak to or be seen by those living in the village. The white reflection he'd seen must have been the hair of some passing ghost, as even thought they couldn't be seen or heard they showed up in reflections. 

Curious, he borrowed his mother's knife one day and wandered around the village with it held out in front of him. The adults rolled their eyes or corrected his grip and told him to be careful where he was pointing it and the other kids watched him and whispered to each other but he didn't pay them any mind. He was going to find a ghost, and he was going to find out why they had bothered to come back at all. He flashed it around the armory, the well, every corner of his home...nothing. It wasn't until he got to the enchanter's pond that he finally found what he was looking for. The pond was completely abandoned when he reached it, a handful of metal lilies floating on its still surface, which is why he knew he was looking at a ghost when he glanced at his borrowed blade and there, seated on the edge of the pool, was another moonshadow elf. She looked to be young, maybe a few years older than him. He gripped the knife a little tighter and ignored the fluttering of his heart as he stared right at the reflection. "Um...H-hello?"

The girl didn't react. He tried moving a little closer but it was as if he wasn't there. Maybe she couldn't hear him, either? He hopped up next to her, staring down at her reflection in the water and shivered when she glanced up at him. Not sure what else to do, he waved.

The ghost girl turned to look at him, the real him, and he turned to look back but she was still just as invisible as before. The reflection caught his eye again as she waved back. Grinning, he tried to motion for her to _stay there_ and ran all the way back home, dropping the knife back into its hiding place so he could free his hands for a handful of moonberries. He ran back to the fountain, trailing berries as he went and was relieved to still see her reflection right where he'd left her. She waved as he carefully sat down on the ledge next to her and he watched her reflected expression as he held the berries out towards her. "I don't know why you came back here, but you must be hungry, right?"

He still couldn't tell if she could hear him but she did reach out and pluck a berry from his hands. When he turned to look it had vanished into thin air and he nearly threw the berries in his excitement. He grinned down at the fountain, trying to think of a way to ask her why she'd been turned into a ghost when a new elf stepped into view. This one was definitely not a moonshadow elf judging by his dark brown hair. He turned his head to say something to the girl and Loret threw the berries down in his haste to get away because the newcomer didn't even have horns. He stared into the seemingly empty air for the two ghosts, swiping out to try to touch them but try as he might he couldn't find them and a glance at the pool showed their reflections were gone. He spent the rest of the afternoon looking for them unsuccessfully, but after that day he started carrying around a simple mirror and a pouch of whatever foods he could find in the forest, just in case he happened to stumble upon another forgotten visitor.

**Author's Note:**

> I should be either editing or drafting fics right now but here we are.


End file.
